(The Center Square) – Thursday marks 24 years since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks that claimed the lives of nearly 3,000 Americans, including several hundred first responders.
Remembrance ceremonies were held across the country, including in Federal Way, Wash., where dozens of firefighters, police officers, city officials, and military members gathered with community members at South King Fire and Rescue Station 64.
Station 64 has several pieces of wreckage from that fateful day in American history.
The station, located on South 320th Street, just a few blocks east of Interstate 5, displays a 10-foot-long piece of steel from one of the World Trade Center buildings, a large stone from the Shanksville, Penn., site where United Airlines Flight 93 crashed after passengers forced their way into the cockpit to prevent the plane from hitting its intended target in Washington, D.C. – possibly the U.S. Capitol Building or the White House.
The fire station also has a limestone block from the Pentagon, where another plane that was taken over by terrorists hit.
The memorial also includes a pear tree in tribute to the Survivor Tree, a pear tree discovered in the rubble of the World Trade Center after the attack and nursed back to health.
Station 64 is believed to have the most complete memorial to that day on the West Coast.
Federal Way Police Chief Andy Hwang and Col. Michael F. Keenan, U.S. Air Force (Ret.), were guest speakers at Thursday’s event.
“Those who were killed on that day, nearly 3,000 people, are the largest loss of life resulting from a foreign attack on American soil and the greatest loss of rescue personnel in American history,” Hwang said before a crowd of about 150 community members and first responders. “As your police chief, it is both an honor and a heavy responsibility to stand before you today to pay tribute to those who made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty.”
Hwang noted the 343 firefighters who rushed into the burning towers in New York City and lost their lives.
“And we honor the 72 law enforcement officers who exemplified bravery as they responded without hesitation, running into danger, while others fled,” he said. “We also pay tribute to the 55 lost military personnel who were stationed at the Pentagon. And we must never forget about the innocent civilians who were simply going about their lives on that fateful day,”
A black granite wall with the names of the 2,977 people who died in the attack is a prominent part of the Station 64 memorial.
Photos of the hundreds of firefighters and law enforcement officers who died during the attacks were taped on the fence surrounding the pear tree, just behind the podium for Thursday’s ceremony.
Keenan, who was also a former pilot for United Airlines, shared his story of learning he would be activated as a reservist in the Air Force within hours of the attack. He urged those in attendance to make sure that no servicemember has to come home from deployment to be treated the way Vietnam War veterans were treated.
America is doing much better in taking care of veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and homelessness, he said, adding that more must be done.
“The good news is we’ve gone from 74,000 [homeless veterans] to just over 35,000,” Keenan said. “The bad news is it’s still 35,000 homeless veterans.”
Keenan also noted the rate of veterans “leaving early” in reference to illness related to overseas deployment and mental health issues, leading to suicide.
“They have an 87% higher melanoma rate,” he noted. “They have 16% higher prostate and breast cancer rates. I’ve had four close friends who’ve had cancer. Three of them left home early.”
It was 10 years after the attacks that firefighters from Federal Way traveled to New York City to pick up the beam and traveled to Pennsylvania to collect the large stone from the field in Shanksville, where United Airlines Flight 93 crashed, killing all 44 people on board.
One of the passengers aboard that flight was Todd Beamer, who helped organize other passengers to attack the hijackers on the plane and was heard to say, “Let’s roll,” just as the group rushed the cockpit. Todd Beamer High School, which opened in Federal Way in 2003, is named in his honor.
Thursday’s ceremony ended with Federal Way City Councilmember Jack Walsh leading those in attendance in singing “God Bless America.” Community members sang with their hands over their hearts, and those in uniform stood and saluted.
